The Paperboy
by Skyout
Summary: This is a silly little fic about a very young Sakura meeting Syaoran for the first time. Please R&R, just for fun...


Intro: Okay, in this fic Sakura is still very young. It's before she really knows anything about the Clow Cards, and in it she meets a slightly older Syaoran for the first time. It's just a silly story that won't have more chapters or anything. I just thought it was a cute idea. Please R&R.

The Paperboy

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A light breeze ruffled the lower branches and made the rustling leaves tickle Sakura's nose. She had been crouched behind the bushes in the front yard for almost an hour, and her legs were starting to get stiff. He was late! She checked her new Hello Kitty watch again. The hands had barely moved.

The front door opened, and a pair of slipper-clad feet appeared. Whew! It was only her dad. He headed down the walkway with his nose buried in a book. He was so intent on what he was reading that he almost stepped right on Sakura before he saw her. "Huh? Sakura! What are you doing down there? I thought you were out riding bikes with Rika and Chiharu."

Sakura blinked up at him, "I was just taking a little rest, Dad."

Her father blinked back at her through smudged glasses. "In the bushes?" he asked in an amused voice.

"Well yeah," she answered. "I mean, it's a lot cooler down here."

He raised one eyebrow at her, "If you say so, kiddo. I'm going back in the house now, but do me a favor, would you? Bring in the paper when it comes. It's here kind of late today."

"Sure Dad," Sakura answered as she hunkered back down into the bushes. Without meaning to she checked her watch again. Hello Kitty's hands still hadn't moved much. Where was he? This was b-o-r-i-n-g. Her thoughts drifted back to the dreams she'd been having lately. Weird dreams. She was forever dreaming about cards, and they weren't ordinary cards either. It seemed almost like the cards had their own special personalities, and it was her job to learn about each one.

Click! The front door opened again, and this time it was a pair of sockless sneakers that came out. Oh no! It was her dork of a brother! She scrunched back under the bushes as far as she could go, hoping he would cut across the lawn. No such luck. The sneakers stomped down the walkway and stopped right in front of Sakura's hiding place.

Her big brother frowned down at her. "Dad told me you were out here. What are you doing? Don't you know that hiding under the bushes makes you look just like a hedgemonster from Kyoto?"

Sakura stuck out her tongue, "Pound sand, Touya! If anyone looks like a monster here, it's you! Yikes! She ducked too late, and her brother thumped her right on top of the head.

"Ooww!" she reached up to refasten one of her barrettes. "Just wait, Touya. One day I'm going to get as big as you, and then you'll be sorry."

"I'm holding my breath," he said. "Boy are you a grouch today. And where did you learn to say 'pound sand' anyway? I oughta take you inside and put some fishpaste in your mouth to straighten you up."

Sakura grimaced. Fish paste! Ugh! "Why are you bugging me, Touya? Don't you have any homework or laundry to do, or something?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," Touya answered. "I'm meeting Yuki over at Penguin Park. He got some new kid to take over his paper route today so that we could catch the Lotus Festival down by the lake.

"WHAAAAAAAAAATTT?" screeched Sakura. "WHAT NEW KID?"

Touya backed up a step, "Whoa there, spaz. I don't know the kid. He's just here for the summer visiting his family from China. His name is Syaoran something or other. Whadda you care?"

Sakura frowned at him, "I'm…um… just curious, that's all."

"Well, you'd better get out of the bushes, hedgemonster, before you scare him and he decides to leave our paper at someone else's house."

Sakura squirmed, wishing that he would just hurry up and go back inside, "_Okay_, Touya. I'll be inside in a minute."

"Whatever," he called over his shoulder as the door slammed shut behind him.

Sakura jumped up and made a mad dash for the mailbox. Aaaggghhh!!! Some sandy-haired boy was there already. He opened up the box and started to shove the newspaper in.

Oh please, please, please let him not see it, thought Sakura as she tried not to look. Gaahh!!! He found it!

The boy reached into the box and pulled out a small square of white paper. He slowly unfolded the note as Sakura stood rooted to the spot.

_I really, really, really like u. Do u like me?_

_Please circle one._

_Yes…..No_

Double gaaaahhh!!! Sakura wanted to die. Baka! Baka! Baka!

The boy slowly raised his head from the note to search her face with honey-colored eyes. 

Oh boy, thought Sakura. Those eyes are such a strange color. They are really familiar. I know them from somewhere. Suddenly she realized that those eyes had appeared many times in her Card dreams. She was always looking into them, trying to see that face that was behind them…

"HEY!" the boy shouted, breaking into her reverie. 

Sakura realized that he had been talking to her, "Huh? I'm sorry. I didn't hear you. What did you say?" She was blathering like a baka. 

Still staring at her, the boy slowly repeated his question, "Don't- I- know- you- from- somewhere?"

"U-umm… I'm not sure," Sakura said as she dragged her concrete feet toward the mailbox. She stretched out her hand, hoping he would give her the note, but no such luck. He held the newspaper instead, a little bit out of her reach, almost as if he were daring her to take it. 

As Sakura stepped forward, staring into those intense eyes, she suddenly felt as if her feet were lifting up off the ground. Oh no, she thought. I'm getting all floaty. What's wrong with me? I don't even know this boy. And I love Yukito! I only get floaty when I see Yuki! Sakura struggled with these thoughts, but as she looked at him, a jumble of images filled her mind. She felt as if she'd known this golden-eyed boy forever.

"I'm Li Syaoran," the boy said. Looking puzzled, he handed her the newspaper. As her trembling arm took it, he made sure that his hand rested on top of hers. The moment that their hands touched, a strange yearning came over him. His eyes roved over her, almost as if he were memorizing the tiniest details of her face. She's so young, he mused, but this must be the girl that keeps appearing in my dreams.

When his hand touched hers, Sakura started at the warmth of his skin. "Uh.. I'm S-S-Sakura," she stammered, as he slowly pulled his hand away.

"I know who you are," he said, as a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "I guess I've always known."

With that, Sakura clutched the paper to her chest and sprinted toward the house. Her sandals clacked up the front porch and finally stumbled into the house. "Hooooeeeeee," she breathed, as she sank down onto the smooth wooden floor. She inched over to the window in time to see the boy carefully fold her note and put it in his breast pocket. As he got onto his bike to ride away, the strangest thought popped into Sakura's head. That's the boy I'm supposed to be with some day. And as she watched him disappear from sight, Sakura knew that her life was never going to be the same.

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I know that this was silly and sappy, but I couldn't help myself!!! Please take a sec to review!


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